To:DAVID WIJNKOOP

Published:First published in 1964 inCollected Works, Fifth (Russian) Ed., Vol. 49.

      Sent to Zwolle.

      Printed from the original.

      Translated from the German.Source:Lenin
	  Collected Works,

      Progress Publishers,[1977],

      Moscow,Volume 43,

      pages465-466a.Translated:Martin Parker and Bernard IsaacsTranscription\Markup:R. CymbalaPublic Domain:Lenin Internet Archive

      (2005).You may freely copy, distribute,
	display and perform this work; as well as make derivative and
	commercial works. Please credit “Marxists Internet
	Archive” as your source.

Sörenberg, 15/VII. 1915

DearComrade,

Iam sending you the report on the Berne preliminary conference by our
representative Comrade Zinoviev. Will you please show it to Comrades
Pannekoek and Gorter and let us know as soon as possible your opinion and
that of your party (or resolution).

Ithink this preliminary conference was very important and useful only
in the sense that itdefinitelyshowed up the “strange” (to put
it mildly) role of certain German “Leftists” (Frau Clara Zetkin in
particular). A few months ago I asked one of the German “Leftists” in the
presence of Comrade Radek whether, if things came to a split, Clara Zetkin
would go with the old or with the new party (that is, the revolutionary,
and not the national-liberal party like that of today). “With the old
one,”this“Leftist” answered without hesitation.

ComradeRadek got very angry with this Leftist and assured me that the
man was mistaken, and that Clara Zetkin would decidedly and sincerely fight
the mean German social-chauvinists.

Andnow this argument has definitely been settled, but not in favour of
Radek. Zetkin wishes to go togetherwithHaase-Kautsky, but
Haase-Kautsky desire “unity” (with Südekum: we call this in Russian
“unity of lackeys, a splitting of revolutionaries”, that is, unity with
the national bourgeoisie, a splitting of the international working class)!!
I am convinced that this “Left” conferencewithZetkin,withHaase,without Lichtstrahlenand theTribunepeople, is sheer hypocrisy: the objective significance of
this conference consists merely in strengthening the old disreputable party
by means of asham struggleof the “Left” (à la Zetkin)
against the “Right” (the Whigs and Tories of present-day Britain!).

Wemust (together with the Tribunists andsomeof the German
Leftists,not à laZetkin—perhaps also with the Lettish
party and the Polish Social-Democrats (known asthe Opposition)) do somethingvery quickly, if we do not want to
miss this very important moment.

ComradeRadek promised to translate our resolutions into
			       German.[1]You are already familiar with our Manifesto (of the Central Committee)—it
has been published, unfortunately in abbreviated form, in yourTribune. David in his book quotes this Manifestoveryconscientiously (almost unbelievably so for an opportunist). We are sending
you Radek’s translation and would ask you to let us knowas soon as you
canwhether you consider it possible and advisable to prepare a joint
resolution and come for ward with a joint declaration of protestagainstthe “Left” conference (Zetkin & Co.). We, I believe,
shall do it—in one form or another.

Withbest regards,N. Lenin

P.S.Please show this also to Comrade Luteraan, with whom we once came
out together against the “Marsh” (the Centre), (naturally, ifyouthink it would be useful to show this letter to Comrade
Luteraan).

Wl.Uljanowin Sörenberg(Kanton Luzern) Schweiz. All this
is strictly confidential!

[1]Meaningthe resolutions of the Berne Conference of the
R.S.D.L.P. Groups Abroad (see present edition, Vol. 21,
pp. 158–64).—Ed.